"But we came up the mountain," said Will, "and naturally, to get to camp we ought to go down. That's easy."
"Yes, it's easy enough to go down the slope, but where will we come out? I'm in favor of going up."
"What for?"
"Well, the higher we go the better view we'll have. Then we can size up the country, and decide which way we'd better travel. No use simply going down, for we may come out miles and miles from our camp."
Will agreed in this view, and the boys started up the trail again. But luck was against them. They did not know it, but they were on one of the wildest mountain ranges in that section of the country. Many travelers had been lost on it, for the trails, made by wild animals, were confusing, and there were a number of them.
"We don't seem to be getting anywhere," said Will, at length.
"That's so," admitted Jed. "I'm hungry; aren't you? Those fish weren't very filling."
"No, indeed, but I don't see how we're going to get anything to eat."
For several hours more the boys wandered on. They were tired, and their stomachs craved more food. They saw no game, or they might have provided themselves with food, and they came across no more streams from whence they could take fish. They were in a sad plight, for night was coming on, and they were farther than ever from camp—lost in the mountains.
As Jed, who was in the lead, was turning around a big rock, that marked a shift in the trail, he uttered an exclamation of surprise.